USU basketball: women's team playing at Colorado State on Wednesday

Utah State women's basketball (3-12, 1-3 MW) returns to the road to open the week of competition at Colorado State (10-5, 2-2 MW) on Wednesday, Jan. 10, at 7 p.m.

Colorado State welcomes the Aggies to Moby Arena with a 10-5 overall record, having gone 2-2 in its first Mountain West games. Last week, the Rams defeated San Diego State, 65-63, and fell to Fresno State, 56-45. Wednesday will be the sole regular-season meeting between Utah State and Colorado State.

Colorado State returned three starters and six total letterwinners from last year’s roster. A year ago, the Rams went 25-9 on the year, including a 15-3 Mountain West record to claim the conference title. Redshirt freshman guard Grace Colaivalu leads the Rams in scoring, averaging 12.1 points per game, while junior forward Annie Brady is the leading rebounder, tallying 8.1 boards per game. As a team, Colorado State is averaging 62.7 points per game, while holding its opponents to an average of 56.6 points. The Rams are shooting 42.0 percent (361-of-860) from the field, 32.2 percent (94-of-292) from the 3-point line and 65.4 percent (125-of-191) from the free-throw line. Additionally, CSU is holding its opponents to a conference-low 34.0 percent field goal percentage and 25.5 percent 3-point percentage. Ryun Williams is in his sixth season as the head coach at Colorado State where he has an overall record of 125-51.

Colorado State leads the all-time series against the Aggies, 17-10, including an 11-4 advantage in games played in Fort Collins. The teams split the pair of contests last season, with each team winning on its home court. Utah State’s win snapped a 12-game series run for the Rams and was the first since 1985.

Sophomore guard Olivia West is the leading scorer for the Aggies, averaging 14.7 points per game, while sophomore guard/forward Shannon Dufficy is the top rebounder, averaging 8.7 boards per game. As a team, Utah State is shooting 39.4 percent (343-of-871) from the field, 26.7 percent (70-of-262) from the 3-point line and 67.2 percent (160-of-238) from the free-throw line.